We are studying the ways in which the environment affects the interactions between plants and microbes. We focus our efforts on important crops such as cassava, cotton and sorghum. On the far left is a healthy cassava plant thriving in the field in Nigeria. In the middle is a bioluminescent reporter used to watch a pathogenic strain of Xanthomonas move through the vasculature of an infected cassava leaf. On the right, water droplets accumulate on the leaf surface, potentially providing a conducive environment for pathogen entry into a host.